Thursday, November 12, 2015

Defunding Planned Parenthood is as nutty as nullifying Obergefell - by the same nuts

“It's the old GOPer adage; They are obsessed with fetal cells in the womb but once you are born it's ‘fuck you.’ You are on your own.”

The US government does not send Planned Parenthood big checks in the form of grants. “Defunding” Planned Parenthood means stripping them of Medicaid eligibility. Medicaid reimburses Planned Parenthood for medical services (excluding abortions) provided to poor people which comprises 97% of PP's work. The Hyde Amendment prevents Medicaid from reimbursing PP for abortions.

Defunding PP has no direct connection to abortion (regardless of the moronic and false rhetoric). Defunding PP is an attempt to punish the organization for performing abortions which, last time I checked, is a perfectly legal medical procedure. These people falsely claim that Planned Parenthood receives taxpayer funds for abortions. These are the same nuts who falsely claim that research demonstrates that gays are terrible parents.

Last night's email from Tony Perkins titled “Only 51 Senate Votes Needed to Defund Planned Parenthood, Time to Act is Now” might be good for fund raising but it is otherwise inaccurate since they need 66 votes to override an inevitable veto. Those are nowhere in sight (along with the 38 states required to ratify a constitutional amendment to overturn Obergefell v. Hodges). Same nut. Same nuttiness.

And what, pray tell, is the excuse for punishing Planned Parenthood for providing a legal medical procedure? Those videos, of course. Of course. Despite the hysteria those exposé videos simply confirm that, with consent, PP provides naive tissue for research. Most of it ends up at university laboratories where serious people are investigating serious problems. Would the nuts prefer that the tissue be discarded as medical waste? These are the same nuts who seem to prefer that a child stay in the system rather than be cared for by a gay couple.

People like Perkins want the public to infer that PP promotes abortion in order to harvest tissue. That's about as dumb as claiming that the homosexual agenda (defined, perhaps, by After the Ball) is to promote homosexuality to young people in order to recruit them. Same nuts. Same nuttiness.

And exactly where are all these poor people supposed to go for the health services that PP provides. Someone can go to Planned Parenthood for birth control, breast and cervical
cancer screenings, and well-woman visits – covered for free, without a
copay – even if Planned Parenthood is not included as an in-network
provider in their Medicaid plan. How many other clinics are willing to do that? Does Tony Perkins care enough to even ask the question? Ryan Anderson (who likes to compile lists of medical facilities). Has he called any of them? This is as idiotic as reparative therapy. Same nuts. Same nuttiness.

As part of the health care law, states have the option to provide
Medicaid coverage to most individuals with incomes below $16,243. 19 states did not do so solely for the purpose of opposing President Obama. Planned Parenthood is treating a group of people for free. How many other clinics are willing to do that?

They are not going to defund Planned Parenthood any more than they are going to overturn Obergefell v. Hodges, at least not when a Democrat is in the White House. If they did it would only hurt poor women. It's the old GOPer adage; They are obsessed with fetal cells in the womb but once you are born it's “fuck you.” You are on your own.